Mexican America - Bibliography
Mexican America: Bibliography
Ahlborn, Richard, ed. Man Made Mobile: Early Saddles of Western North America. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1980.
Altman, Ida. "Spanish Society in Mexico City After the Conquest." Hispanic American Historical Review (1991) 71:3.
Arizpe, Lourdes. "The Rural Exodus in Mexico and the Mexican Migration to the United States ." International Migration Review. Volume 15 (4) (1979): 626-649.
Bouvier, Virginia. Women and the Conquest of California, 1542-1840: Codes of Silence. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 2001.
Cline, Sarah. "The Spiritual Conquest Reexamined: Baptism and Church Marriage in Early Sixteenth-century Mexico ." Hispanic American Historical Review, Vol. 73 (3) (1993): 453-480.
Cortés, Hernán. Letters from Mexico . New Haven: Yale University Press, 1986.
Davalos, Karen Mary. Exhibiting Mestizaje: Mexican (American) Museums in the Diaspora. Albuquerque: The University of New Mexico Press, 2001.
Díaz del Castillo, Bernal. The True History of the Conquest of Mexico . New York: Robert M. McBride & Company, 1927.
Driscoll, Barbara. The Tracks North: The Railroad Bracero Program of World War II. Austin: The University of Texas Press, 1999.
Fernández-Aceves, María Teresa. "Once We Were Corn Grinders: Women and Labor in the Tortilla Industry of Guadalajara, 1920-1940." International Labor and Working-Class History, No. 63 (2003): 81-101.
García, Mario. "The Chicana in American History: The Mexican Women of El Paso, 1880-1920—A Case Study." Pacific Historical Review, Vol. 49, no. 2 (May, 1980): 315-337.
Garcíagodoy, Juanita. Digging the Days of the Dead: A Reading of Mexico’s Días de Muertos. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, 1998.
Gaspar de Alba, Alicia. Chicano Art: Inside/Outside the Master’s House. Austin: The University of Texas Press, 1998.
Glantz, Margot, ed. La Malinche, sus padres y sus hijos. Mexico:Taurus Ediciones, 1994.
González, Gilbert. Labor and Community: Mexican Citrus WorkerVillages in a Southern California County, 1900-1950. Chicago:University of Illinois Press, 1994.
Goodwin, Lee. "Field Notes: Heritage and Change through Community Celebrations: A Photographic Essay." Western Historical Quarterly 29 (Summer 1998): 215-223.
Kessell, John. Kiva, Cross, and Crown: The Pecos Indians and New Mexico 1540-1840. Washington, D.C.: The National Park Service, 1979.
Lafaye, Jacques, and Lockhart, James. "A Scholarly Debate: The Origins of Modern Mexico - Indigenistas vs. Hispanistas." The Americas , Vol. 48, No. 3, 315-330.
Limón, José. American Encounters: Greater Mexico , the United Status, and the Erotics of Culture. Boston: Beacon Press, 1998.
Oles, James. South of the Border: Mexico in the American Imagination 1914-1947. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993.
Rodríguez, Jospeh. "Becoming Latinos: Mexican Americans, Chicanos, and the Spanish Myth in the urban Southwest." Western Historical Quarterly 29. Summer 1998: 165-185.
Root, Regina. The Latin American Fashion Reader. Oxford: Berg Publishing, 2005.
Sánchez, George. Becoming Mexican American: Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicano Los Angeles, 1900-1945. New York: OxfordUniversity Press, 1993.
Sando, Joe. Pueblo Nations: Eight Centuries of Pueblo Indian History. Santa Fe: Clear Light Publishers, 1992.
Semo, Enrique. The History of Capitalism in Mexico : Its Origins, 1521-1763. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1993.
Viola, Herman, and Margolis, Carolyn, ed. Seeds of Change: Five Hundred Years Since Columbus. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1991.
Wells, Miriam. Strawberry Fields: Politics, Class, and Work in California Agriculture. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996.
"Mexican America - Bibliography" showing 23 items.
Page 1 of 3
"La Tierra Nueva en Aztlán"
- Description
- The evolving civil rights movement of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s revolutionized the consciousness of young people across the United States. As in African American communities, a new sense of mobilization spread among Mexican Americans. Many adopted a more political identity—chicano and chicana—and explored their history, which was omitted from school textbooks. The Chicano movement sought to remedy the injustices experienced by many Mexican Americans, from substandard education and housing to working conditions. Many symbols and ideas of the Chicano movement were taken from the pre-Hispanic past, especially Aztec history. Aztlán, the original homeland in the Aztec migration stories, has an important place in Chicano mythology. As a symbolic reclamation of their place in American history, Chicanos locate Aztlán in the Southwest United States, in the area conquered during the Mexican-American War. The image shown here, by Manuel Moya, is an ink drawing done on a handkerchief known as a paño. Paños are graphic art works drawn on handkerchiefs by Chicano prisoners in California, Texas, and the Southwest. Titled, La Tierra Nueva en Aztlán, or The New Land in Aztlán, combines the images of the Aztec past with a Pancho Villa-like figure from the Mexican Revolution.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1986
- artist
- Moya, Manuel
- ID Number
- 1991.0431.01
- catalog number
- 1991.0431.01
- accession number
- 1991.0431
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
"Tierra o Muerte"
- Description
- Following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the annexation of Texas, the land claims of many Mexican families were not respected, either by the new English-speaking settlers or by the U.S. government. Dispossession from family- and community-owned lands dealt a severe economic blow to the livelihood of generations of Mexican Americans. The issue of land evokes especially bitter memories in New Mexico. In 1967, the year this poster was made with the slogan Tierra o Muerte, meaning Land or Death, a Hispanic land rights organization called La Alianza, led by Reies López Tijerina, raided the Rio Arriba County courthouse in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico. In addition to reclaiming land from the government of New Mexico, the goals of the raid were to free imprisoned Alianza members and to arrest the district attorney who was prosecuting them as communists and outside agitators. The raid on the courthouse was ultimately unsuccessful and Tijerina served time in a federal prison. Although seen by some as a divisive figure, Reies López Tijerina was as recognizable as Cesar Chavez to many Chicano activists of the late 1960s. Mirroring similar political tensions in the African American community, Chicano civil rights activists were torn between leaders such as Chavez, who advocated nonviolence, and leaders like Tijerina, whose political strategy was decidedly more militant.
- Date made
- 1967
- ID Number
- 1990.0654.01
- catalog number
- 1990.0654.01
- accession number
- 1990.0654
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Spanish Colonial Revival Chair
- Description
- The production and exchange of ceramics, metalwork, textiles, and other crafts were part of the economies of the Southwest and Mesoamerica centuries before the arrival of Africans, Spaniards, and other Europeans in the Americas. While central Mexico was almost immediately connected to the global economy after the Spanish conquest in the early 1520s, New Mexico and other frontier areas remained isolated and relatively self-sufficient until the mid-1800s. Once New Mexico was incorporated into the United States however, wagon trains and then railroads brought in new English-speaking residents and tourists, unsettling the economies of the established Hispano and Pueblo communities. By the early 20th century, a new livelihood emerged for local artisans—the creation of crafts for the tourist market. The tourist market demanded products that were as much about stereotypes as they were about authenticity. This Spanish Colonial Revival chair was made by Hipólito Sisneros in 1945 while he was a student at the Taos Vocational Educational School. Using a decorative technique called chip-carving, Sisneros crafted this chair in the style of New Mexican furniture from the early 1800s. After the 1930s, many Hispanics and Native Americans were enrolled in craft schools like this in an attempt by the state of New Mexico to support local craft cooperatives that targeted Anglo-American consumers.
- date made
- 1945-1946
- originator
- Taos Municipal School
- maker
- Sisneros, H.
- ID Number
- 1991.0712.01
- accession number
- 1991.0712
- catalog number
- 1991.0712.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Orale ese Vato
- Description
- As this paño humorously titled Orale ese vato (Spanish for roughly, right on, man) shows, one characteristic of Chicano art is that it avidly consumes and reconfigures both American and Mexican pop culture with its own slang, looks, and attitude. A paño is a hand-drawn handkerchief traditionally designed by Chicano prisoners. Like a letter that retells memories of both good and bad times, paños are often mailed as gifts to friends and loved ones. Valued as a vibrant popular art that overlaps with muralism, tattoo design, graffiti, and auto airbrushing, paños and their makers are receiving increased exposure for their visual storytelling abilities. An illustrator and a muralist known for depicting Chicano themes, Walter Baca (1947-1993) designed this paño in New Mexico in 1992.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1992
- artist
- Baca, Walter R.
- ID Number
- 1993.0150.02
- catalog number
- 1993.0150.02
- accession number
- 1993.0150
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
The Last Moment of the Emperor Maximilian
- Description
- This relief print from The Magazine of Art dramatically illustrates the final moments before the execution of the Mexican Emperor Maximilian I in 1867. An Austrian noble by birth, Maximilian was installed by Napoleon III of France. French forces had invaded Mexico in 1862, after President Benito Juárez suspended payments on its foreign debt. Despite a major victory by Mexican forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, the French seized control of large sections of Mexico, including the capital. Maximilian was initially supported by Mexican conservatives in a backlash against the changes instituted by the Mexican War of Reform (1857–1861). However, once on the throne, his support of a free press, open universities, land reform, and other progressive ideas of the day proved to be out of step with his conservative constituency and the Catholic Church. Menaced by the government of the United States, victorious after its own civil war, and the rising success of Mexican nationalist forces, the French withdrew their military support of Maximilian, the last emperor of Mexico. This historic image is one of 45,000 artistic and commercials prints housed in the Graphic Arts Collection of the National Museum of American History.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- ca 1890
- graphic artist
- Babbage, T.
- publisher
- Magazine of Art
- ID Number
- 1996.0197.350
- catalog number
- 1996.0197.350
- accession number
- 1996.0197
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Máquina de Margaritas Heladas
- Description
- In the 70's, the margarita surpassed the martini as the most popular American cocktail and salsa surpassed ketchup as the most-used American condiment. Today, Mexican cuisine, in all its modified, regionalized, commercialized, and even highly processed varieties, has become as American as apple pie. Mariano Martinez, a young Texas entrepreneur, and his frozen margarita machine were at the crossroads of that revolution. The margarita was first made on the California-Mexican border, and became associated with the service of Mexican food, particularly, with one of its variants, Tex-Mex, a regional cuisine that became popular all across the United States. In 1971, Martinez adapted a soft serve ice cream machine to create the world's first frozen margarita machine for his new Dallas restaurant, Mariano's Mexican Cuisine. With their blenders hard-pressed to produce a consistent mix for the newly popular drink they made from Mariano's father's recipe, his bartenders were in rebellion. Then came inspiration in the form of a Slurpee machine at a 7-Eleven, a machine invented in Dallas in 1960 to make carbonated beverages slushy enough to drink through a straw. The soft-serve ice cream machine that Martinez adapted to serve his special drink was such a success that, according to Martinez, "it brought bars in Tex-Mex restaurants front and center. People came to Mariano's for that frozen margarita out of the machine." Never patented, many versions of the frozen margarita machine subsequently came into the market. After 34 years of blending lime juice, tequila, ice, and sugar for enthusiastic customers, the world's first frozen margarita machine was retired to the Smithsonian.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- ca 1970
- maker
- Sani-Serv
- ID Number
- 2005.0226.01
- catalog number
- 2005.0226.01
- accession number
- 2005.0226
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
"Guerrilleros Mexicanos"
- Description
- This lithograph illustrates the chaos and conflict engulfing northern Mexico during the years of the Mexican-American War from 1846-1848. In these years the United States organized an Army of Occupation, initially led by General Zachary Taylor, to capture cities like Monterrey in preparation for a later assault on the Mexican heartland. The figure on horseback is a Mexican guerilla fighter. These skilled horsemen, often doubling as both patriots and bandits, had an established role in Mexican military tradition, and were actively recruited to combat the U.S. invaders. To understand his limited appeal to the Mexican public, note that the dead figures over whom the guerrillero is triumphantly galloping appear to be Mexican citizens, not invading American soldiers.
- The lithographer is unknown.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- ca 1848
- maker
- unknown
- ID Number
- DL*60.2559
- catalog number
- 60.2559
- accession number
- 228146
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
"The Storming of Chapultepec"
- Description
- This print depicts American forces attacking the fortress palace of Chapultepec on Sept. 13th, 1847. General Winfield Scott, in the lower left on a white horse, led the southern division of the U.S. Army that successfully captured Mexico City during the Mexican American War. The outcome of American victory was the loss of Mexico's northern territories, from California to New Mexico, by the terms set in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. It should be noted that the two countries ratified different versions of the same peace treaty, with the United States ultimately eliminating provisions for honoring the land titles of its newly absorbed Mexican citizens. Despite notable opposition to the war from Americans like Abraham Lincoln, John Quincy Adams, and Henry David Thoreau, the Mexican-American War proved hugely popular. The United States' victory boosted American patriotism and the country's belief in Manifest Destiny.
- This large chromolithograph was first distributed in 1848 by Nathaniel Currier of Currier and Ives, who served as the "sole agent." The lithographers, Sarony & Major of New York (1846-1857) copied it from a painting by "Walker." Unfortunately, the current location of original painting is unknown, however, when the print was made the original painting was owned by a Captain B. S. Roberts of the Mounted Rifles. The original artist has previously been attributed to William Aiken Walker as well as to Henry A. Walke. William Aiken Walker (ca 1838-1921) of Charleston did indeed do work for Currier and Ives, though not until the 1880's and he would have only have been only 10 years old when this print was copyrighted. Henry Walke (1808/9-1896) was a naval combat artist during the Mexican American War who also worked with Sarony & Major and is best known for his Naval Portfolio.
- Most likely the original painting was done by James Walker (1819-1889) who created the "Battle of Chapultepec" 1857-1862 for the U.S. Capitol. This image differs from the painting commissioned for the U. S. Capitol by depicting the troops in regimented battle lines with General Scott in a more prominent position in the foreground. James Walker was living in Mexico City at the outbreak of the Mexican War and joined the American forces as an interpreter. He was attached to General Worth's staff and was present at the battles of Contreras, Churubusco, and Chapultepec. The original painting's owner, Captain Roberts was assigned General Winfield Scott to assist Walker with recreating the details of the battle of Chapultepec. When the painting was complete, Roberts purchased the painting. By 1848, James Walker had returned to New York and had a studio in New York City in the same neighborhood as the print's distributor Nathaniel Currier as well as the lithographer's Napoleon Sarony and Henry B. Major.
- This popular lithograph was one of several published to visually document the war while engaging the imagination of the public. Created prior to photography, these prints were meant to inform the public, while generally eliminating the portrayal of the more gory details. Historians have been able to use at least some prints of the Mexican War for study and to corroborate with the traditional literary forms of documentation. As an eyewitness, Walker could claim accuracy of detail within the narrative in his painting. The battle is presented in the grand, historic, heroic style with the brutality of war not portrayed. The print depiction is quite large for a chromo of the period. In creating the chromolithographic interpretation of the painting, Sarony & Major used at least four large stones to produce the print "in colours," making the most of their use of color. They also defined each figure with precision by outlining each in black. This print was considered by expert/collector Harry T. Peters as one of the finest ever produced by Sarony & Major.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1848
- associated date
- 1847-09-13
- distributor
- Currier, Nathaniel
- depicted
- Scott, Winfield
- lithographer
- Sarony & Major
- artist
- Walker, James
- ID Number
- DL*60.2602
- catalog number
- 60.2602
- accession number
- 228146
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
- No Image Available
Buffalo Hide Painting of Saint Anthony of Padua
- Description
- The man in this painting, holding an apparition of the baby Jesus, appears to be a saint. Known as Saint Anthony of Padua, the "Hammer of Heretics," he was celebrated for his many miracles and his ability to communicate with rich and poor alike. Missionary priests who proselytized among Indians in what is now New Mexico frequently instructed local craftsman to render his likeness. It had taken decades for Pueblo tribes to accept Christianity. The mission where this painting was created was miles from the Gulf of Mexico, where imported canvases would have been prohibitively expensive and in short supply. Missionary priests worked out a compromise with their Indian laborers, increasingly relying on their skill in rendering animal skins into a workable substitute for scarce European canvases.
- This particular image is credited to a mystery artist known as "Franciscan B" for his recognizable style, rendered in vegetal paints on buffalo hide. According to Mrs. E. Boyd, former curator of the Museum of New Mexico, who examined this piece for possible transfer to the National Museum of History and Technology (now American History): "By the time the Franciscan missionaries were being withdrawn from New Mexico and replaced by Mexican secular clergy, the visiting bishops from Durango, Mexico, the seat of the diocese, repeatedly ordered the removal of sacred images painted on animal skins as not suitable." Following passage of the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which transferred New Mexico to the United States, canvas was more readily available and buffalo herds were dwindling. By the close of 19th century, the buffalo was becoming the unofficial emblem of the United States, as prominent as the eagle in American symbolic imagery.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1720
- associated date
- 1700 - 1750
- user
- Tesuque Mission Church
- originator
- Tesuque Mission Church
- maker
- Franciscan B
- ID Number
- CL*176401
- catalog number
- 176401
- 176401
- accession number
- 31785
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
1879 Almanac
- Description
- Titled Un Calendario Curioso para 1879, this almanac was printed in Mexico at the beginning of the Porfiriato—the period between 1876 and 1911 dominated by the presidency of Porfirio Díaz. This was a period of intense foreign investment in Mexico. U.S. corporations were especially active in Mexico's mining industry, which was now connected to the United States by an ever-expanding web of railroads. While many fortunes were made during this era of peace and economic growth, the boom did not trickle down to the rural poor or the urban working classes. Many small farmers and indigenous communities lost their fields to powerful landlords and plantation owners. The middle and upper classes also grew disgruntled as the political elite stifled the country's democracy in the name of progress. This almanac offers a window into the everyday lives of Mexicans living in the late 1800s. In addition to a year-long forecast, it includes a timeline of world and Mexican history, highlighting dates such Noah's flood and the execution of Emperor Maximilian. A section at the end offers an elaborate list of recipes selected by "people of good taste" for "people of all classes."
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- CL*300959.14
- catalog number
- 300959.14
- accession number
- 300959
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center